This year, WWE has gone to town making release after release, and for sure-the company has done it much earlier than usual this year. Instead of waiting for the time after WrestleMania to effect some major movements in their roster, the departures began in January and are continuing to roll into February. And in more detail, here are the wrestlers released up to date and what they do and how they might fare in the future.
Duke Hudson
Brendan Vink, or Duke Hudson as he is known now, was very much quietly let go in January, but news did not start seeping out till February. The 35-year-old Australian was picked up by WWE in 2019, debuting on the main roster during the pandemic event; he went to NXT, called himself a gambler, then won the NXT Tag Team Championships with Andre Chase as a part of Chase University.
Paul Ellering
This month, he was one of the first confirmed releases by WWE; iconic manager Paul Ellering, who for years enjoyed a successful association with the Road Warriors, returned to WWE, pairing with the Authors of Pain and Karrion Kross in Final Testament faction, where his role was mostly underutilized to showcase his legendary mic skills.
Authors of Pain (Akam and Rezar)
NXT's most dominant tag teams also received the same releases; Authors of Pain, who'd given awesome past success returned in 2024, and fans felt that there was not much hype behind what WWE made out of the two. Akam and Rezar, in fact, have both given a foray to promote with the Wrestling Entertainment Series, and a revisit to this project with them may well be on the cards.
Cedric Alexander
After eight-and-a-half years, Cedric Alexander's WWE journey came to an end. A former Cruiserweight and Tag Team Champion, Alexander had been busy mentoring younger talent in NXT. Delta airline has reported about interest from AEW but his wife Big Swole's past unpleasantness with Tony Khan might make things tougher.
Sonya Deville
Sonya Deville is the only case of a wrestler where the contract was not renewed but she was not released. Deville joined the company in 2015 and after nearly a decade in the company, had only held the championship for 2023 when she and Chelsea Green took the titles as Women's Tag Team Champions.
Blair Davenport
That caught everyone by surprise: she got released just after being called up to the main roster. She was not given much opportunity to shine. Fans are really disappointed because it would be not a surprise with her impressive independent and STARDOM career that she will have plenty of offers lining up after she leaves WWE.
Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows
The Good Brothers have released their anger over this by announcing that Anderson was in the convalescence stage of a shoulder injury while they were being kicked out. Both had very successful runs for WWE, NJPW, and TNA, and next big move from here is exciting.
Isla Dawn
Isla Dawn was also released from Unholy Union, which now comprises Alba Fyre. The duo looks forward to adding more accolades onto their list, which already includes the defeat of Jade Cargill and Bianca Belair for the Women Tag Team Titles. Dawn has already given some hints for her next chapter on social media.
Giovanni Vinci
Fabian Aichner, known as Giovanni Vinci, has had a rocky career in WWE. He has no place among the organization's best competitors, and despite his in-ring talent, he found it hard to acclimatize himself to being dropped from Imperium. His departure, thus, opens doors for a fresh start elsewhere.
Elektra Lopez
Elektra Lopez's release came out of the blue, especially as she was on SmackDown that same night. Being a second-generation wrestler, she also happens to have an excellent independent background and could make her way back to promotion like Ring of Honor.
Carmella
Carmella was merely a contracted wrestler from WWE. The woman is an ex-Smack Down Women's Champion and a four-time 24/7 Champion, but questions regarding what she will do with the rest of her life linger.
What Next for the Released Talent?
Well, WWE releases are ashes in their mouths, but there are so many places and land to go. From AEW, NJPW, TNA, or outside those lines, these gifted individuals will keep moving forward with their life journeys in the industry.
Fans will remain glued to the turn of wrestling fortune as such stars shift closer or farther away from their direct wrestling screened audience.